It was a hot day when Skyler let the ball go over the fence. She wasn't paying attention, and didn't even try to catch it. "Go get it, will you, Ryan?" She asked the 12 yr-old, who shook back his longish brown hair and ran out front. She'd pinned her hair up, but it was still really hot. She shifted feet impatiently as 6 yr-old Colby rambled on about a bug walking across his sneaker. It seemed as though Ryan had been gone an hour when he finally came jogging back with the ball. "What took you so long? I was ready to go home!" Skyler said with a sigh. "I couldn't just bust into the neighbors yard! I had to introduce myself!" Skyler had been curious about the new neighbors. They hadn't been there long and had been gone a lot. With the high fence you couldn't see onto their side, but she'd heard kids voices. She actually lived on the lot behind Ryan & the kids, but they always left the gate open since they were like family. "So....are they nice? Who are they?" She asked, fanning herself with a catchers mitt. "I only met Zac. No one else was around. He's my age. We have famous neighbors now." He smirked, tossing the ball into the air. "Famous? Really? Who?" She picked 4 yr-old Amber up and kissed her neck as she giggled. Megan, who was 9, had just came out of the house after getting a drink. "Who's famous?" She asked, tossing her long brown hair. "Our neighbors. I just met Zac. He's cool...I thought I knew who he was. The Hansons." "As in the group? Really?!" Megan smiled. "Yeah, but don't go getting star struck, Meggie, we're just going to treat them like anyone else...right, Sky?" Ryan looked to her for back-up. "Totally, Rye...now are we playing or what? I'm getting tired & thirsty." She sighed.

That had been the end of the conversation. She thought it was neat, but was determined not to treat them any differently because she didn't believe in fawning over people. Anyway, she liked the music, but didn't watch enough t.v. to even remember exactly what they looked like. She was nineteen and had a lot more on her mind than t.v. Her dad worked a lot so she was responsible for the whole house, in addition to working full time and part-time school when she had the chance. She and her father had been on their own since the night five years ago when a drunk driver killed her mom, younger brother and older sister. Ryan Davis had been best friends with her little brother Aaron, and Ryan's mother Peggy had been best friends with Skyler's mother. So now Peggy was like her substitute mom. And she loved all four kids like they were her brothers and sisters. Ironically, this tragedy was too much for her father to handle, and he'd since developed a drinking problem. Being a business man, he was often around alcohol socially, and seemed to cover his problem well. But at home, he often drank until he passed out, and he and Skyler didn't have much of a relationship at all. It often made her think that her father's love had died with the rest of the family, and sometimes she wished she had, too. That's why she was always with the Davis kids. Because they made her laugh and forget her problems with her father.

A few days later, she and Ryan had filled the Kiddie pool for Amber & Colby, and were trying to figure out a way to have fun and cool off. She ran home and put on denim cut-off and a black bathing suit top and ran back over to order Ryan to spray her with the hose. He was all too happy to drench her, and she screamed and laughed as the cold water pelted her skin. They decided to build an obstacle course of sorts, using a bunch of bicycle tires from the garage, a broom stick lying across two pieces of wood, the Slippery Slide, etc. This required a lot of planning, and they were too deep in concentration to notice most of the Hanson kids peering over at them from an upstairs window. They also didn't witness Mrs. Hanson asking her kids what they were doing huddled around the window and when she did they become shy. They were out of earshot when Zac, who had now spoken to Ryan twice, volunteered to get his brothers and sisters invited into the Davis yard, and only noticed him when he yelled "Whatcha doin'?!" upon bursting onto the scene. Skyler was startled, but Ryan barely looked up as he began to explain their dilemma.

"Can I help you guys?" He asked, tossing back his golden-blonde hair. "Sure," said Ryan, as he dropped the hose to scratch his arm. Zac looked over at Skyler. He smiled. "Hi, I'm Zac." He hesitated then stuck his hand out. "Hi Zac, I'm Skyler." She smiled, shaking his hand. She introduced Megan, Colby & Amber. He smiled almost shyly, yet looked like he was in on some sort of joke. "So....can my brothers & sisters come over?" He finally asked. Ryan looked at Skyler who looked over to Megan. Meg smiled and nodded. "Sure, Zac, go ask them." She replied. But he didn't move an inch. He just looked up and began waving his arm. Ryan and Sky followed his eyes up to the second story of the house next door, where they saw vague movement. Then Zac began moving tires, and Amber asked Sky if she could get in the pool yet. She had a little green bathing suit on with white daisies along the edge, that Sky had bought for her the other day. Just as she was about to help her, the partially open gate swung wide open, and a herd of Hansons entered the yard. By now Zac was feeling at home, and he introduced the Davis kids & Skyler to his brothers & sisters and vice versa. It was now a big bunch, but Skyler had to admit it was nice meeting new people for once. She smiled and said "Hi" to each Hanson, until she got to the second oldest, Taylor. He had the most beautiful blue eyes she'd ever seen. Even though she didn't normally go for blondes, she had to admit that his silky blonde hair, which reached just below his shoulders, was the perfect match for his eyes and coloring. He was thin but tall, at that lanky stage of growth. He smiled back at her and said "Hey", and she actually felt a little self-conscious. Then she met the oldest, Isaac. He was a little taller than Taylor, and had a very nice smile, braces and all . She actually didn't notice the braces at first, so she thought they must be the clear kind. His hair was a darker shade of blonde and a little curly along the edges. About the same length, but a different texture. He was a little more solid in the arms and legs, but still on the thin side. At least what she could see. They all had baggy t-shirts and long baggy shorts on except for the oldest girl, Jessica. She and Megan seemed to like each other right away, which was good.

After all the introductions, they set about finishing the obstacle course. Skyler, Taylor and Isaac helped the little kids go through and then splashed them in the pool. Sky was afraid one of the younger kids was going to fall on the wet grass or in the pool, so she was trying hard to keep an eye on all four kids under nine. The youngest Hanson, Mackenzie, was full of energy, but Sky could see that Isaac was accustomed to handling him. He seemed able to predict where the boy was going to run or jump and caught him in mid-fall a few times. After the little kids were done, Ryan and Zac went through while the others cheered them on, then everyone kind of took turns running through. At first Skyler started feeling self-conscious again, but then Taylor aimed the hose at her and she screamed and ran after him, forgetting all self-consciousness. At one point Isaac said she had a nice house, and she explained that she actually lived behind the Davis' but was very close to them. It hadn't occurred to her that they would assume she was the big sister. After an hour or two of fun with water, Peggy emerged from the air-conditioned house.

"Hi everybody! I'm Peggy Davis, the kids' Mom! Do you guys want something to drink? I'll bring something out ..." She disappeared before half of them could respond. "Sky....why don't you go get the radio?" Ryan suggested. She nodded and ran into the house. She wiped her feet and was helping Peggy get plastic cups out, when the doorbell rang. Sky ran to answer it. It was a woman with really long blonde hair. She smiled. "Hi...I'm Diana Hanson...I wanted to make sure my kids weren't pestering you." Skyler smiled back. "Not at all, Mrs. Hanson, I'm Skyler. Come on in." She opened the door wider. Peggy introduced herself and Mrs. Hanson, or Diana as she told Peggy to call her, presented a can of Wildberry Kool-Aid. "It's cheap and it's the only thing Avery will drink lately." She shrugged, laughing. She began helping Peggy prepare drinks while Sky ran to get the radio. Before heading back out, she checked herself in the mirror. Her hair was wet and her eyeliner was smudged. She rubbed it off. Her nose and cheeks were slightly pink with sunburn, but she did get some color over most of her body. Resolving herself to the fact that she looked gross today, she fixed her top and headed outside with the radio. They had gathered around the large picnic table and she set the radio on the edge of a big planter. She put it on the Oldies station, not sure what everyone preferred, but figuring it was G-rated music. She settled in on a bench. Both Isaac and Taylor made a move to sit by her, then they looked at each other and smirked. Avery ran over and sat by Skyler instead, but Taylor started picking on her until she got up to hit him then he sat down in her spot . Isaac pulled up a chair at the end of the table. Peggy and Diana came out with pitchers of Kool-aid and Iced Tea, and Mackie, as the littlest was called, ran to his mother with delight and latched onto her leg. Peggy had cut up watermelon in a big bowl, and she put out a plastic bucket to spit the seeds in. Sky had to yell at Ryan for spitting a seed at his younger brother, but after that they had fun aiming for the bucket. It was not a pretty sight. Sky was so busy helping Amber (who insisted on sitting in her lap ) eat her watermelon, that she didn't have any herself. Amber told Taylor and Isaac all about her new bathing suit and learning to swim and how she hated seeds in watermelon but Mommy wouldn't buy the seedless ones.

Finally, Skyler eased Amber off her lap. "Okay Amber, lets get you cleaned up. You too, Cole, let's go rinse off." She said. "Use the hose, Sky." Ryan said, heading over to rinse his hands. "Okay, but no spraying! Or I won't come near you!" She warned. He held his hands up as if he had no clue what she was talking about, and she carried Amber over, holding Colby's hand, and rinsed their hands and faces. Just then Peggy came out. "Hey guys, if you want to do that in the kitchen, you can.." Jessica, Avery, Megan & Mackie bolted for the back doors to clean up, and Colby grabbed Amber's hand and ran in just in response to their mom's voice. Taylor and Isaac had just rinsed their hands with the hose. "Hey Zac," Ryans' face lit up, "Wanna see our tree house? It's really cool...it's like a big ship with a porch and a light everything..." "Yeah? Okay..cool..." Zac grabbed one more piece of watermelon and ran after Ryan, who was headed for the back fence. Isaac & Taylor were watching them and Skyler felt obligated to explain. "The tree house is on my property...but we keep the gate open all the time. It was built by my dad and Ryans dad for him and my brother." "You have a brother?" Taylor asked, rinsing his sneaker off carefully with the hose. "I used to. He died." She didn't know whether to explain or not. "I'm sorry." Taylor said, blushing slightly and setting the hose down. "Me too." Isaac quickly added. "Was it a long time ago?...you don't have to answer that if you don't want to." His brown eyes softened and he looked genuinely sorry. "No, it's okay. He was killed in a car accident five years ago along with my mom and sister." After pausing, she added, "Aaron was younger...he was eight. And Sunset...Sunny, we called her, was older than me. Nineteen." They were both looking at her, unsure of how to respond, but obviously empathetic.

"Jimmy was Ryans' best friend. His name was Aaron James, but we called him Jimmy. And Peggy was my mom's best friend. So that's why we're so close. She's like my mom." "What about your dads?" Taylor asked, pushing the hose aside with his foot before looking back at Skyler. "I live with my dad. He just works a lot. Peggy and Steve got divorced not long after Amber was born. But he has visitation...they're on good terms now." Isaac nodded and Taylor looked back down at the hose. There was an awkward silence. "So...do you want to see the tree house? It really is cool..I tell Ryan all the time that I'm gonna start charging him a toll to cross over to my property!" She smiled. Both Taylor and Isaac laughed with much relief and the awkward silence was quickly broken. She gave them a tour of the house, built in a huge tree. It was impressive for a tree house. There was a bed to sleep on, a cooler for drinks a battery-powered light, a narrow "porch" wrapped around the front. There were two rooms and a storage space above. They had made it really homey in here for the nights they hung out playing cards and talking. All three brothers were obviously impressed. Skyler felt very proud, for some reason. "Dad designed it like a ship...he was thinking of that ship at the end of Peter Pan." Ryan explained. "Cool..." Isaac said for the tenth time, as he peered into the loft. Then he glanced out the window to Skyler's house, but didn't say anything.

By the time they headed back to the house, Mackie & Avery had gone home with their mother, and only Jessica remained. She and Megan had necklaces spread out all over the picnic table and were talking excitedly. "Whatcha doin', girls?" Isaac asked, approaching the table. "I made necklaces,"Megan said shyly,"and Jessica's picking one out." "Aren't they nice, Ike?"Jessica smiled, genuinely impressed. "Yeah, Jess, they're very pretty." He nodded in agreement. It was starting to get dark. Amber and Colby were inside. Skyler was still looking at Isaac from when he'd made his comment a minute ago, and had just realized she was staring at him when he looked back at her. He smiled and she smiled back then looked down at her feet quickly.

"We'd better get going...ready, Jessie?" Isaac said, taking a step forward. "Do you like this one, Ike? I think I'll go with this one." She said, holding a mostly blue beaded necklace up. "Yeah, sure..it's nice. Come on." He turned to face Skyler, "It was nice to meet you." he said. "Same here.." she smiled. Jessica got up from the table after helping Megan put the necklaces back into their case. She said goodbye and started to follow Isaac, who was heading for the front gate. Taylor still stood by Skyler. He turned to face the back of the yard and cupped his hands around his mouth. "ZAC!!! COME ON!!" He yelled. Then he turned to Sky and smiled slightly. "It was good to meet you, Sky...can I call you that?" "Oh sure...,"she nodded, "it was good to meet you too.." They looked at each other, smiled slightly again, then he turned and bolted for the gate. About 5 seconds later, Zac and Ryan came running up from the back of the yard. Zac waved to Skyler as he ran by, and Ryan followed him out front, returning a minute later. "Well, Rye Bread, I'm bushed. See you tomorrow, dude." Sky ruffled the top of Ryan's hair and turned to go. "Don't call me Rye Bread!" Ryan yelled, then bent down to drag the hose back to the house with him.